[omc-boats] Checking intermediate housing oil, back seats, repairing hull

The ice broke up on Sunday and I've been eagerly anticipating my first trip
out this season. We had a 80 degF day on Monday, but I unfortunately had
some prep work to do, planned on having issues and so hadn't planned on
going out, so I left all my PFDs, paddles, registration cards, and launch
permits at home. This year everything went great though and the boat
started on its first crank (last year I spent two hours tracing a stuck
fuel), so I finished way early. Unfortunately there wasn't time to run
home and get everything and go out before it got dark. The rest of the
week is supposed to be 45 and raining!

Anyway, as usual there's some minor issues I still need to work on.

First, does anyone have a trick for checking the oil level in the
intermediate housings that don't have a drain? It's clear that some oil
leaked over the winter (oil all over the bottom of the ball gears), but I
can't figure out any way to determine how much without pulling the ball
gear to drain it entirely. I seem to recall that the oil level wasn't at
the upper fill plug. Is there any harm in overfilling it?

Second, does anyone have experience doing hull repairs. During a very
overloaded dive trip last year, I noticed some leakage from a point
in the hull beneath the rub rail. There's a small crack in the hull there
- I couldn't find it again last night, but I recall it being about 1"
long. Does anyone have experience repairing these? I'm inclined to leave
the rub rail in place and patch it from the inside using a bunch of marine
two-part epoxy and perhaps a few pieces of fiberglass. Obviously I don't
really care how it looks (it's in a concealed location and my hull is beat
up enough already), but I'd like to it be solid.

Third, does anyone have any back seats for sale? I currently have these
a set of B&M 3034 Economy Fold Down Boat Seats:
  http://www.boatersworld.com/product/166483602.htm
but they're absolutely decrepid - torn fabric, rotten foam, and broken
brackets. I could use another set of BM3034 (preferably blue or white), or
similar seats like a Wise WD301, WD334, WD681, or WD734. I can get the
original seats for $35 each plus shipping, but I hate to blow $70 if I can
find a used set in good condition for less.

I'm also hoping to repair the front seats, but I haven't even thought
through how to do that.

Best wishes to everyone!

Ethan
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Received on Wednesday, 28 March 2007